BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN -- China and Brunei have pledged to further boost political mutual trust and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation.

The pledge was written in a joint press communique issued on Friday after Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Haji Erywan, Brunei's second minister of foreign affairs co-chaired the second meeting of the China-Brunei intergovernmental joint steering committee on Thursday. Haji Mohd Amin Liew, Brunei's minister at the Prime Minister's Office and second minister of finance and economy also attended the meeting.

Expressing satisfaction over the continued development of the strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries, the two sides unanimously agreed to further boost political mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in economy, expand people to people exchanges as well as strengthen mutual aid at the multilateral level under the guidance and leadership of the heads of state of the two countries.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Brunei, an important milestone in the development of bilateral ties. The two sides announced to launch a series of commemorative events and hoped to press forward bilateral cooperation amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

China supports Brunei in assuming the rotating chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Hailing China on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China this year, Brunei spoke highly of China's efforts made to alleviate poverty and improve people's wellbeing and believed that China will successfully achieve the goal of comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects.

Brunei Welcomed bilateral discussions to be held on the synergy between China's Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035 and its national vision, the Wawasan 2035 to further boost the development of bilateral ties and reiterated its commitment to strengthening cooperation in the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.

China expressed its support for Brunei to achieve national development goals and wished its efforts a success.

The two sides reviewed the success of the first meeting of the China-Brunei intergovernmental joint steering committee held in Beijing in 2020 with fruitful consultations on further enhancing bilateral ties, and reiterated the committee's role of serving as a key coordination mechanism for providing strategic guidance for bilateral cooperation.

They, meanwhile, reaffirmed efforts to establish working groups to explore future cooperation in the sectors including economy, trade, investment, law enforcement, energy, information and communications technology, transport, maritime, architecture, industry, science, technology and innovation, among others, as were listed in the memorandum of understanding on establishing the intergovernmental joint steering committee. The two sides also pledged to work out a scope of duty for the committee at an early date.

They announced the establishment of a working group on energy cooperation under the framework of the joint steering committee, and agreed to push for the establishment of working groups on cooperation in the areas of maritime, agriculture and fisheries, tourism and cultural and people-to-people exchanges while working out their respective business scope.

China expressed its appreciation for the successful efforts by the Bruneian government in coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, while Brunei expressed its appreciation for China's anti-coronavirus fight at home and the measures taken including making Chinese-made vaccines a global public good to lead global recovery. The two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation on vaccine procurement and use.

The two sides agreed to deepen cooperation on the Brunei-Guangxi Economic Corridor project with the aim of making it a model hub for both the China-East ASEAN Growth Area cooperation and building the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, while pledging support to the Hengyi Industries Sdn Bhd's oil refinery and petrochemical project.

The two sides expressed satisfaction over the existing cooperation in the areas including trade and investment, energy, agriculture and fishery, interconnectivity, tourism, health care, defense and cultural and people-to-people exchanges, while pledging further efforts to enhance the cooperation.

The two sides stressed that they should regularly hold economic, trade and investment dialogues, such as the meetings of the economic and trade consultation mechanism between the two countries.

Noting the steady progress of cooperation in agriculture and fishery, the two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in relevant fields, especially in the export of aquatic products.

Recognizing the importance of health cooperation, which has been highlighted amid the COVID-19 pandemic, they also looked forward to boosting such cooperation.

With the achieving of global post-COVID-19 recovery, the two sides hoped to resume flights between their two countries as well as the people-to-people and cultural exchanges in a safe manner.

The two sides welcomed the progress made in the China-East ASEAN Growth Area cooperation and China supports Brunei in forging the East ASEAN Growth Area hub with focus on the building of the Muara port.

As this year marks the 30th anniversary of the dialogue relations between China and ASEAN, the two sides are looking forward to holding a series of commemorative events for the anniversary and agreed to elevate China-ASEAN strategic partnership to a new high.

Both sides pledged to strengthen maritime cooperation, explore maritime financing and connectivity at sea, and conduct cooperation in the ocean economy, such as the application of ocean sciences and marine environmental protection.

They agreed to forge the China-ASEAN blue economy partnership and promote the protection of marine biodiversity and sustainable use of marine resources.

Both countries reiterated their commitment to safeguarding and promoting peace, stability and security in the South China Sea. Disputes on territory and jurisdiction should be settled through peaceful dialogue and consultation by countries directly concerned based on the rules and principles of international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Both sides agreed to hold the third meeting of the China-Brunei intergovernmental joint steering committee at an appropriate time.